The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1887-04-15

gentleman; don't care much about the
money, I'll take thousand for a third share
if can get gentleman-none of your Beers
or mean whites for me. tell you, have
had enough of Beers and their ways; the best
day of my life was when old Shepstone ran
up the Union Jack there in Pretoria and
could call myself an Englishman again.
Lord! and to think that there are men who
are subjects Of the queen and want to lie sub
jects of republic again. Mad! Capt Mel,
l tell you, quite mad! However, there's an
end of it all now. You know what Sir Gar
net Wolseley told them in the name of tho
queen up at the Vaal river, that this
country would remain English till
the sun stood still in the heavens
and the waters Of the Vaal ran backward.
That's good enough for me, for, as tell these
grumbling fellows who want the land back
now that we have paid their debts and de-
feated their enemies, no English government
goes back on its word or breaks engagements
solcmnly entered into by its representatives.
We leave that sort Of thing to foreigners.
No, no, Capt. Mel, would not ask you to
take share in this place if wasn't sure that
it would remain under the British flag. But
we will talk of all this another time, kpoIt
COME i'll to breakfast. ~
After breakfast, rs John was far too lame
to go about the farm, the fair Bessie sug-
gested that he should como and help her to
wash batch Of ostrich feathers, and, ac-
cordingly, off he went. The locus operandi
was i'll space of grass in the rear ola little
clump of "naatche" orange trees, of which
the fruit is like that of the Maltese orange,
only larger. Here were placed all ordinary
washing tub half filled with warm water and
a tin bath full of cold. The ostrich feathers,
many of which were completely coated with
red dirt, were plunged first into the tub Of
warm water, where John Mel scrubbed then.
with soap, and then transferred to the tin
bath, where Bessie rinsed them and then laid
them on a sheet in the sun to dry. The
morning was very pleasant, and John soon
came to the conclusion that there are
many more disagreeable occupations in
the world than the washing of ostrich
feathers with lovely girl to help you; for
there was no doubt but that she was lovely,
a very type Of happy, healthy womanhood,
as she sat there opposite to him on the little
stool, her sleeves rolled up almost to the
shoulder, showing pair of arms that would
not have disgraced statue of Venus and
laughed and chatted away as she washed the
feathers Now, John Mel was not a suscepti-
BILE man; he had gone through the fire years
before and burned his fingers like many
another contiding youngster; but, all the
same, he did wonder as he sat there and
watched this fair girl, who somehow reminded
him of a rich rosebud bursting into bloom,
how long it would be possible to live in the
same house with her without falling under
the spell of her charm and beauty. And
then he began to think Of Jess, and what a
strange contrast the two were.
"Where is your ssterl" he asked presently
"Jess! Oh, think that she has gone to
the Lion Kloof, reading or sketching, don't
know which. You see, in this establishment
l represent labor and Jess represents intel
lect," and she nodded her head prettily at
him, and added, "There is a mistake some
where; she got all the brains"
"Ah," said John, quietly, and looking up at
her, ~ don't think that you are entitled to
complain Of the way that nature has treated
YOU"
She blushed little, more at the tone of his
voice than the words and went on hastily:
"Jess is the dearest, best and cleverest woman
in the whole world-there, believe that she
has only one fault, and that is that she thinks
too much about me- Uncle told me that he
had told you how we came here first when l |
was years old. Well, remember that
when we lost our way on the veldt that |
night, and it rained so and was so cold, jess |
took off her own shawl and wrapped it round |
me over my own. Well, it has been just like
that with her always. am always to have
The shawl-everything is to give way to me.
But there, that is Jess all over; she is very
cold, cold rs stone, sometimes think, but
when she does care for anybody it is enough
to frighten one. I don't know a great num-
Der of women, but somehow l don't think
that there can be many in the world like jess.
She is too good for this wild place, she ought
@ go away to England, write books and be-
come famous woman, only" she added, re-
~ am afraid that Jess books
would all be sad ones"
just then Bessie stopped and suddenly
changed color, the bunch of lank, wet
Gathers she held in her hand dropping from
with little splash back into the bath. Fol-
owing her glance, John looked down the
avenue OF blue gum trees and perceived big
nan with q broad hat and mounted on a
plendid black horse, cantering leisurely to-
ward the house. II